Age: 40
Occupation: HVAC Techician
Health issue: Anxiety
Symptoms: I spent my 20s racing mountain bikes, finishing school, travelling around the world and living life to its fullest every day. Suddenly I looked back over the past few years and noticed I had stopped doing as much. I had a fear of enclosed spaces, so it was hard to travel by plane or train. I developed such anxiety over the possibility of having a heart attack that I was actually having chest pains, even though the doctors could not find a problem.
Health recommendations: I did some research and found a mindfulness-based program called mindshift, so I signed up. In this program I learned that areas of the brain that were designed to keep us alive in youth start to work against us as we age, and we can develop anxieties or fear. I started working on putting the anxiety where it belongs, and I started meditating.
The results: Now with meditation, the anxiety is controlled; my mind can tell the difference between real and perceived fear. I have gone back to living life to its fullest, and I have no problem getting out of my comfort zone. I’m looking forward to the second half of my life being just as good as the first.